Macron, Le Pen clash in French TV debate

PARIS (Reuters) – The top candidates in France’s presidential election clashed in a televised debate on Monday, with centrist Emmanuel Macron accusing far-right leader Marine Le Pen of lying and seeking to divide the French.

The debate, the first between the five main contenders ahead of a two-round election on April 23 and May 7, could help viewers make up their minds in a French election where nearly 40 percent of voters say they are not sure who to back.

Opinion polls show Macron and Le Pen pulling away from the pack in an election that has been full of twists and turns, and which is taking place against a backdrop of high unemployment and sluggish growth.

One of the most heated exchanges came between the two frontrunners, after Le Pen accused Macron of being in favor of the burkini, a full-body swimsuit worn by Muslim women that created weeks of controversy in France last summer.

“You are lying (to voters) by twisting the truth,” retorted Macron, a 39-year-old former economy minister under Socialist President Francois Hollande who is running as an independent.

The debate on TF1 television grew testy when the candidates were asked about migration and Islam.

“I want to put an end to immigration, that’s clear,” Le Pen said, before talking about a rise of Islamist fundamentalism in France and saying the security situation in France was “explosive”.

After the surprise of Britain’s Brexit vote and the election of Donald Trump in the United States, markets are nervous about the possibility of a Le Pen victory. She is pledging to take France out of the euro and hold a referendum on EU membership.

While polls show Macron and Le Pen establishing a clear lead in the first round, conservative candidate Francois Fillon, the one-time front-runner, has fallen back, damaged by a scandal surrounding the employment of his wife as a parliamentary assistant.

Only the top two candidates go through to the runoff, where polls show Macron easily beating Le…